


Gauze

by somanyopentabs



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - BDSM, Dom/sub, First Kiss, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Physical Abuse, Sub/Sub, Violence, sub!bruce, sub!clint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-19
Updated: 2013-03-19
Packaged: 2017-12-05 19:05:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/726860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somanyopentabs/pseuds/somanyopentabs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bruce is patching Clint up when he makes the admission.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gauze

“’Knock me down a few pegs’,” Clint muttered bitterly to himself as he fumbled with the first aid kit in the locker room. “How much further down can I fucking get?”

He pressed gauze to the cut in his lip, swearing creatively when he heard the sound of shuffling feet.

“Clint?” Bruce was barefoot, wearing sweats and staring at him. Clint had forgotten, in his haste, that Bruce liked to use the gym late at night when no one else was around. What did he do down here, anyway? 

“Yeah, hey. I’ll be out of your way in a minute.”

“You’re not in my way. Um. Are you okay?”

Clint huffed out a slight laugh. “Fine. You know how Cap was talking about relationships interfering with our roles as Avengers? Guess I don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

“Your...your dom did that to you?”

“He’s my ex, now. But, yeah.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. He was an asshole, anyway.”

“Can I...?” Bruce approached slowly. “I’d like to help.”

Clint more than willingly handed over the kit and sat down on the bench so Bruce could easily reach him. “Go ahead, knock yourself out. You’ve patched me up enough times in the field.”

“So, it’s over between you and...?”

“Yep. Done and done.”

Bruce used an alcohol swab to gently clean Clint’s cuts. “That’s good. I don’t like seeing you like this.”

“Then you’re gonna really hate what he did to my back.”

“There’s _more_?”

Clint stood and pulled his t-shirt over his head. He heard Bruce gasp when he turned around to show off his marks.

“That’s...oh, Clint. Here, sit down and I’ll clean these up as well. You’re...you’re _bleeding_.”

Clint sat down again and let his head fall into his hands as Bruce got to work.

“Doms, right?” Clint said, because as much as he didn’t want to talk about his last failure of a relationship, he couldn’t help ranting about what was on his mind. “You ever have one pull this kind of shit with you? Before you...you know.”

A dom would have to be suicidal to beat on Bruce like this, but Clint was aware that Bruce had a pre-Hulk past.

“Nothing like this.”

“Then you got lucky.”

“Not every dom is like that. I didn’t have a lot of relationships, but there was someone...someone who took care of me.”

“Like I said, lucky.”

“You never had anyone take care of you?” 

“Not like you do,” Clint admitted, and then froze. He shouldn’t have said that. Bruce was a sub, he was just being nice. And if Bruce’s doctoring was the closest thing that Clint had ever had to aftercare—well, that was Clint’s problem.

“Oh,” Bruce said softly, like he might be feeling sorry for Clint. And Clint might have started this pity party, but that was just too much for him to take.

“Thanks for your help,” he said, getting up while Bruce was still tending to him. “But I’ve gotta go.”

“You should let me finish.”

“I’ll heal. I always do. And this is nothing.”

“She was a sub, too,” Bruce blurted out right before Clint could take his leave.

“What?”

“The woman who cared for me. She was a sub.”

“She was your friend?” Clint had heard of subs getting together. But he’d never met anyone who’d made it work.

“...More than that. I don’t talk about her a lot...it didn’t end well.”

“Because you were both subs?”

Bruce shook his head. “That was never an issue.”

“Oh.” Clint thought about that for a minute. “Why are you telling me all this?”

Bruce averted his eyes, like he didn’t want to answer. But he did, after a few moments of staring at the floor. “Because if there’s something between us, and I think there might be...I think that mismatched power dynamics would be the least of our worries.”

“Never dated another sub before,” Clint admitted. “And my body could use a break from being pummeled.”

“You’re actually considering it?” Bruce asked, guiding Clint back down to a sitting position so he could finish fixing up his wounds.

“Well, yeah. What, did you think I’d get upset?”

“Maybe. Thought I was setting myself up for outright rejection.”

“Not rejection. But I can’t jump into something right away...”

“I understand.”

“Ah, who am I kidding?” Clint said, spinning around on the bench and pulling Bruce in between his legs. “I’m great at jumping into things right away. Let’s make out.”

“ _Clint_ ,” Bruce protested, pulling away before Clint could reel him in further.

“Or we could start with a kiss?” Clint could really use a kiss—with the beating he’d taken earlier that evening, and the most affection he’d had all day was Bruce tending to his bleeding flesh.

“I have to go slow. I’m a sub but I’m not harmless. You _know_ that.”

“And I’m not exactly a delicate flower, either. How do you think I got out of the mess with my dom? He didn’t let me just _leave_.”

“You had to...?”

“Use force? Yeah, I had to. But that doesn’t matter. I promise, it doesn’t. Because it’s over with me and him now.”

“...But. But, you’re vulnerable. I should give you some time to think about this.”

Clint grinned broadly. “Do I _look_ vulnerable to you right now? You’ve been reading too many romance novels if you think a little pain is enough to turn me into an indecisive mess. I’ve decided. I want to try this with you. Kiss me?”

“...Okay.”

It was the gentlest kiss that Clint had ever received in his life. There was nothing possessive in it, nothing forceful. But they kissed and kissed until Clint’s knees felt weak and his hands clutched at Bruce’s shirt.

“Is this a mistake?” Bruce whispered when they broke apart. “I know I’m the one who suggested it, but is this a mistake?”

“Doesn’t feel like a mistake to me. You?”

“No. No, it feels right.”


End file.
